BC Coroner’s Inquest Jury Begins Deliberations About Deadly Winters Hotel Fire

A coroner’s inquest jury looking into the Winters Hotel fire that killed two people in Vancouver two years ago was stood down on Feb. 2 to deliberate potential recommendations to avoid similar deaths. For two weeks, the inquest heard evidence about the fire that killed residents Mary Ann Garlow and Dennis Guay, including testimony that the sprinkler system wasn’t operating because of a smaller fire three days earlier. Presiding coroner John Knox told jurors they could only make recommendations based on evidence presented at the inquest, and not “blame or vindicate any person or agency.” Mr. Knox told the jury they weren’t allowed to make “findings of legal responsibility” or make any legal conclusions about the fire that destroyed the Gastown rooming hotel on April 11, 2022....